The Greatest Gift
READ: Romans 6:19-23
Imagine that a number of houses in your neighborhood were broken into and robbed of their presents during the Christmas season. Tom’s house has escaped any trouble to this point, but his heart sinks as he sees the flashing lights of police cars in his driveway. A police officer tells Tom that the thief had been apprehended while attempting to break into Tom’s house. The policeman gives Tom the option of pressing charges or letting the thief go. If convicted, the charge carries a minimum five-year prison sentence. Tom not only chose to let the thief go free, but proceeds to give him a Christmas present.
This whole scenario probably sounds unrealistic to you, but in reality, it has occurred to every one of us. We are the miserable thief that was caught in sin and deserves extreme punishment. Tom portrays God, who forgave our sin and even went so far as to give us an undeserved gift. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
We deserve nothing less than Hell because of the heinous crimes we commit against God each day. Luckily, God lets us go free from punishment by forgiving all our sins through His Son, our substitute. Through His grace, He also gave us the undeserved gift of heaven.
This next Christmas, if someone asks you to tell them what the best gift you got was, be sure to tell them that it is God’s gift of eternal life.
THINGS TO THINK ABOUT: How are we able to receive God’s gift? Is God’s gift just for us? How can we share God’s gift with others?
PRAYER SUGGESTIONS: Thank God that He has given us such a precious gift. Pray for those who have yet to receive the most important gift.